Danica Patrick, scheduled to compete semi-regularly in NASCAR this year, completed Automobile Racing Club of America at Daytona International Speedway last week.
Though technically it isn't a NASCAR-sanctioned race, the Lucas Oil Slick Mist 200, scheduled for Jan. 6, will be Patrick's debut in stock cars. She will continue to compete in the Indy Racing League, where she won her only major race in 2008.
Rain prevented most of the testing on the first of three days. Patrick, driving for JR Motorsports, concentrated on individual runs in day two and worked on drafting on the third day.
"It was a lot of fun," she said. "It's different than driving the (IRL) cars that I drive. You can run so much closer, and you can cross over each other. But you need to run really close so, like, there's no room for error if someone makes a mistake.
"That's going to be the challenge, but it was a productive day. I learned a lot and I feel really comfortable in the car."
Tony Eury Jr. oversaw the testing.
"She's doing really well," he said. "Drafting is not something that you learn overnight. She has done really well learning how to stay in a pack, learning what the car does in different aero situations. We're pretty pleased. I think I need a little more speed in the car just in single car runs.
Feb. 6 will be "a triple-header day." In addition to the ARCA race, pole qualifying for the Daytona 500 and an all-star race, the Budweiser Shootout, will be held, with the Shootout held at under the lights of NASCAR's most famous track.
Speed TV's Dave Despain assessed Patrick's prospects this way: "How do you define success? Is it how much money Danica will make or how many races she'll win? If it's how much she'll make, it will be a huge success. If it's how many races she'll win, it won't be successful at all. I don't expect her to win more stock car races than she's won IndyCar races, which is one, but in terms of her financial security and opportunity to try a new racing challenge, it's a great thing to do.
"If I were her, I would have done the exact same thing, but I would have done it with some fairly realistic expectations about the outcome. It will be a huge interest builder, should attract some female fans and should attract some younger fans."